Hypermarket

It's not easy to review this film because it's a contradictory piece. I appreciate it as a sympathetic attempt to move television drama into new territory, away from the stagnant tried-and-tested waters of what has been made a thousand times over, and its effort to avoid certain clichés and to be provocatively engaging. Such interesting characters (especially Krobot's secret police officer) are rarely seen in Czech television films. On the other hand, this attempt is clearly beyond the current abilities of its creators, and the screenplay needed more refinement in many aspects. It's uneven; the bloody ending is clearly exaggerated, and despite a few interesting psychological conflicts and directorial ideas, the negative impressions outweigh the positive. Overall rating: 40%. (17/12/2007)